Outsourcing Now More Sophisticated

Vendors that provide both domestic and offshore outsourcing services have gained significant insurance expertise, according to Forrester, a Cambridge, Mass, research company. Most major outsourcers have developed insurance-specific reusable packages that include data models, requirements templates, and supporting software, reports Marc Cecere in a June study entitled "Drivers and Trends for IT Insurance."Forrester notes carriers such as The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company, Cincinnati and vendors such as Fiserv, Brookfield, Wis., are examples of organizations that provide business process outsourcing as an extension of their services and platforms. Other insurance companies have hired CIOs and senior managers from outsourcers.

"This greater sophistication on both sides is demystifying outsourcing and turning it into simply another tool of the CIO," notes the report.